Multi award-winning producer John Battsek creates exclusive new podcast with Audible

London, UK—Audible, the world’s leading provider of spoken-word entertainment, today announces a new, Audible Original podcast from multi award-winning producer John Battsek. Deepcut, a six part, non-fiction investigative series, is Battsek’s first foray into audio-storytelling and is due for release exclusively on Audible in 2021.

Battsek recently co-founded new company Ventureland following a stellar 20-year feature documentary career. Beginning with Academy Award-winning One Day In September, which Battsek conceived and produced, he has since helped create some of the world’s most commercially successful, critically acclaimed documentary feature films including – Searching For Sugar Man (Academy Award-winner, BAFTA-winner), Restrepo (Academy Award-nominated, Emmy-winner), Winter On Fire (Academy Award-nominated, Emmy-nominated), Listen To Me Marlon (Peabody-winner, BAFTA-nominated, Emmy-nominated), Hillsborough (BAFTA-winner), The Imposter (BAFTA-winner), The Tillman Story (Emmy-winner) and Andy Murray: Resurfacing.

Over the course of his career, Battsek has been nominated three times for a PGA Award and was the recipient of 2013 prestigious Grierson Trustees Award for Outstanding Contribution to Documentary.

In his new Audible Original series, Deepcut, Battsek and the Ventureland team will investigate the deaths of four young soldiers, found shot dead at the Princes Royal Barracks (AKA Deepcut) in Surrey, England between 1995 and 2002. As their families search for answers, allegations of bullying, sexual abuse and violence begin to surface and suspicions mount that evidence has been withheld or destroyed. Battsek’s team includes award-winning investigative journalist Jane MacSorley and former detective chief inspector Colin Sutton who join forces to meticulously and sensitively examine the deaths of Privates Sean Benton, Cheryl James, Geoff Gray and James Collinson, championing their families’ campaign for the truth.

Deepcut will be Executive Produced by Battsek alongside Audible’s Martha Little. Prior to Deepcut, Little Executive Produced numerous critically acclaimed original documentaries for Audible including – The Home Front: Life In America During World War II hosted by Golden Globe and Emmy-winner Martin Sheen; What Were You Thinking? hosted by NPR’s former counter-terrorism correspondent Dina Temple-Raston and the Gracie Award-winning The 3-Day Effect hosted by science journalist Florence Williams.

Aurelie De Troyer, Senior Vice President of International English Content at Audible UK, said: “This is a remarkable story that needs to be heard. John and his team have reported an urgent and thought-provoking investigation which unfolds with gripping tension. This Audible Original podcast will raise important questions for some of Britain’s most influential institutions. To be debuting John’s first audio project is a privilege. We can’t wait to bring this and other compelling, camera-shy stories to life on Audible.”

John Battsek, Execuitve Producer on Deepcut for Ventureland, said: “The devastating events at Deepcut and the shocking and dismissive treatment the respective families have received ever since requires thorough re-examination. Audible are the perfect partner for the great team assembled at Ventureland to delve into this deeply disturbing story.”

Martha Little, Executive Producer on Deepcut for Audible, said: “I am a huge admirer of John and his team’s work and am thrilled we can begin the work of uncovering the truth behind this shocking and important audio documentary.”

Deepcut is the latest in a series of exceptional scripted and documentary audio products created by Audible in collaboration with some of the world’s best film, TV and content production companies. Highlights include The Sun King (The Financial Times: “A fascinating, sprawling six-parter”), The Last Days Of August (The Guardian: “Illuminating and sensitively handled”), The Beautiful Brain (Sunday Times: “I can’t stop thinking about its core message … The breadth of argument and depth of detail are remarkable”) and Sleeping With David Baddiel (Esquire: “Goes in deep on the science of sleep”).

Deepcut will be available to download in full in 2021 exclusively at www.audible.co.uk/podcasts.

About Audible

Among the acclaimed performers who have narrated works of literature for Audible are Zachary Quinto, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Lily Collins, Emma Thompson and Jesse Eisenberg. Audible Studios has won a Grammy Award, for its production of Janis Ian’s memoir Society’s Child, and has also been recognised with the Audie Award for Audiobook of the Year, for Colin Firth’s performance of Graham Greene’s The End of the Affair. Audible invented and commercialised the first digital audio player in 1997, and has since been at the forefront of the explosively growing audiobook download segment. On average, Audible members listen to Audible content for 2 hours a day. In 2018, Audible customers downloaded nearly 3 billion hours of content.